Monday, November 25, 2013

Take aCo-cycletour across the US while visiting and learning about cooperative working and living spaces. It's a fun, but rigorous touring schedule that's best for avid cyclists. The deadline to apply is April 8th. Or kick back and relax atBreitenbush, an affordable hot springs resort in Oregon run by a worker cooperative/intentional community that so co-op it hosts theWestern Worker Cooperative Conference. While you're there, stop byPortland, Oregon to get a broad taste of sharing culture and visit localworker coopswhile biking around a model bike friendly town. Take a tour of the San Francisco Bay Area's beautiful coastline, hills and redwoods, and while you're there, see how many worker coops you can hit up using thismap. For more participatory fun, stop by any one of the many collective bike kitchensin the Bay, andNoisebridgea famous hackerspace. If Europe is your thing, visitMondragonCooperative Corporation, the famous worker cooperative complex in Basque, Spain and learn how to create an autonomous cooperative economic region. See thisvideoabout Mondragon - what could be more inspiring!

Monday, November 18, 2013

A Tran's Bay Bike Shop Is In the Right Place!

Best Cities for Female Entrepreneurs

"Intuit published an infographic presenting the best cities for female entrepreneurs, as well as some interesting statistics about the state of women-owned businesses in the US. The report looked at median education levels, unemployment rates, income, population and percentage of business owned by women in each city to provide an overall score for female entrepreneurship.
San Francisco ranks number one, followed by Seattle, Washington DC, Minneapolis, and Portland...."

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

"Super-extreme freestyle mountain biking looks like a thrill. But it's
also dangerous as all get-out, and something most of us are too scared
(or smart) to try. So here's a solution: Take a virtual ride down a
precarious mountain slope and even hit a soaring backflip off a clip via
GoPro.
Pro biker Kelly McGarry had a camera attached to him for his silver
medal run at the 2013 Red Bull Rampage competition in Utah. The
resulting video hit YouTube and is embedded above. It's stunning."

Find Your Used Bike's Value!

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Bicycle Blue Book knows what your bike is worth.
We've compiled data from years of transactions (that adds up to millions of sales)
to give you the most accurate valuation of your used bike. Got one you're
looking to unload, or just curious to know what one is worth? Use the filters
below to find the value of your bike. Whether you're just looking for your next
road bike, or the value of all Cannondale's over the past 5 years, we've got all
the data tucked away just waiting to be pored over.

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Seems like everyone has a smartphone these days—and many
mountain bikers are bringing the technology on the trails. If you like
to mountain bike, and own a smartphone, keep reading for a list of apps
that can help you navigate trails, fix your bike, track your workout and
more.

1. Atomic Softwares’ Bike Repair ($3.99)

Atomic Softwares’ Bike Repair is a practical mobile app that puts bike repair
back into the cyclist’s hands. Need to adjust your derailleur, fix your
shifting, remove your rear wheel or bleed your hydraulic brakes? There
is no need to take your bike to the shop when it’s possible to repair
bike problems on your own—at home or on the trail. With assistance from
the Bike Repair app, learn how to fix 42 problems yourself, maintain
your bike properly and address common bodily aches and pains. Step by
step guides and large photos trump long text in this useful application.
Visit their website for more information.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Check out this Streetfilms video below to learn about the 10,000 bike parking spaces at the train station, as well as the other elements the city has put into place to create a fast, energy efficient, and low-cost transportation system with bikes at the center. Other cities would do well to learn from Groningen.

Monday, November 4, 2013

Project Freeride

If you ride bikes then you have had a bike stolen or know
someone who has. This is a fact. Bike theft is rampant. This summer we
have seen an elevated profile of bike theft in the local media both with
police work and vigilantism. August alone saw Dunbar Cycles team up
with police on an undercover operation that recovered their stolen
property, police recovered seven bikes through their bate bike program,
and a local Vancouver woman steal her bike back from a thief when she
found it for sale on Craig’s List. And these are only the stories that
have been publicized.

Items found by police in a bike thief's backpack by police.

Bike
theft falls into an ugly category of property crimes, the perfect storm
for thieves; it is an easy crime with a value low enough to excuse any
real punishment. Theft under $5000 in provincial court will garnish a
slap on the wrist for first time offenders, fines ranging from
$100-$400, suspended sentences with probation, or where there is prior
related criminal behavior, short periods of jail time. With the
frequency and growing popularity of it, bike theft was up 20% in
Victoria last year and 38% in Calgary, we have ended up in a situation
where insuring for actual value or claiming with the threat of rising
deductibles often leaves us bikeless and bitter. In the past, reporting
our bikes stolen to the police has felt like an exercise in futility.
Often dismantled and shipped out of province before you pick up the
phone, the chances of ever seeing your ride again are slim to none. But
with a combination of the growing popularity of mountain biking and the
rising value of our bikes, the police are taking a more pro-active
approach and it leaves us, the bike owners, in the hot seat. Are we helping bike thieves and hindering police work?

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More from the article:

For all of your rides, record the brand, model, color, serial number,
and modifications. Lock them up, and then lock them up again. Be aware
of your surroundings. Stop Stravaing your rides from your house. Be
smart, think about the bigger picture. While Kayla Smith 'stole' her
bike back, and we all love a good vigilante story with a happy ending,
the thief has probably already stolen a few more bikes since then. Adam
Mantle from Dunbar Cycles teamed up with police and using his online
research they were able to arrest and charge Wesley John Devries. He has
not stolen a bike since. If your bike is stolen, by all means look for
it on Craig’s List, put in the time and be proactive, but team up with
police when you find it. While myopic actions can be sensationalized,
they will do nothing to progress a solution for our community as a
whole.

Friday, November 1, 2013

From Richard Masoner and TreeHugger
Richard Masoner of Cyclelicious: " Bike Pittsburgh created this campaign and
bought the outdoor ad space to remind drivers to pass with care, drive
like a grownup, and take the high road."

Buy Bike Gear/Service or Donate Online

Please consider purchasing gift certificates, bike gear, repair or services online to keep the shop open and to keep The TransBay and all who visit Treasure Island, San Francisco, The Bay Area cycling and happy!

You can click the donate button above for a PayPal donation, or visit my GoFundMe page too.